Lights
by Kyonetsu
Summary: This is a series of one-shots based on songs by LIGHTS. No lyrics included! Rated for language! ::Seto x Katsuya::
1. Savior

**Pairing:** Katsuya x Seto

**Warnings:** There may be _some_ coarse language in this fiction that may not be suitable for younger readers.

**Other Warnings:** This is yaoi so if you don't like it, read it anyway!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters but the story is _mine_. Please don't steal!

Welcome, readers! Since I did my last puppyshipping one-shot, I thought I would challenge myself to write more so I came up with a plan!

Last year, I discovered LIGHTS (you should totally look her up on youtube) and I listened to one album pretty much over and over. After a while, I noticed that I could relate Seto and Katsuya to a lot of the songs sooooo...I decided to write a series of one-shots based on her songs. **There are no lyrics**, fyi, so don't worry. I'm also doing the one-shots in the order of which the songs appear on the album so you could probably follow along and guess what's coming next. These one-shots will have varying POV's and sometimes the narration and the inner thoughts of the characters will mesh (like in this one).

Sorry for babbling a little! xD; I'm sure you guys will figure it out as I go along. Anyway, this first one-shot was inspired by "Savior". Enjoy!

* * *

In all my years on this earth, I have never been dependent on anyone but myself. In the end, we're alone so what's the point of relying on someone else who could easily let you down? I mean, out of all the people I know, my little brother is the most important; even though I know he tries his best _not_ to disappoint me, I know that he could never do so. It's just everyone else that I worry about. Well, not _worry_ per se but you get my point.

I've always been a loner but recently I've had this—feeling, I guess, nagging at me. It's almost like emptiness; I just can't shake it. I tried to ignore it but it seemed to become more apparent when I saw other students at school, hanging out and just talking to one another. I'm not jealous–that's definitely not the feeling I have. I just want someone to confide in, someone that won't judge me and will just listen. They wouldn't even need to make comments. I just need someone to listen. No offense to Mokuba, but he's not exactly what I need, considering the kind of subjects I want to discuss.

Listen to me; I _do_ sound like an old man.

Maybe it's just high time that I got a—no. No, I don't need friends. In the end, we're alone and that's how it's _supposed_ to be. I'm _supposed_ to be alone.

I—I _am_ alone.

[Monday]

It's lunchtime again and as much as I _love_ eating in the cafeteria, I don't think it's what I need today. I need to be alone, to get my head straight. Silence, that's it.

I made my way to the roof, which seems to be the only quiet spot in the whole damn building, and sat down. Eating my lunch wasn't exactly something I wanted other people seeing me do; I'm not sure why. I guess somewhere in the back of my head, I'm convinced that the act of eating is disgusting. Especially when certain people eat—like Jonouchi. His table manners are horrendous.

I sat there on my make-shift seat (really, it was a large block of concrete that students just used to sit on) and stared at my lunch. It looked appetizing but I just couldn't bring myself to eat it. Instead, I sat it aside and pulled out one of my notebooks to doodle in. Yes, I said doodle. I, Seto Kaiba, like to doodle in my notebook.

My drawing skills aren't exactly the greatest but I can scrawl out pictures much better than some people I know—like Jonouchi. He couldn't draw himself out of a paper bag much less paint like Da Vinci, Monet or even Bouguereau. I'm surprised he even knows how to hold his pencil. With a snicker, I started drawing, nothing in particular but just things I had seen and thought were interesting. I guess I was so engrossed with my sketching that I didn't even hear the door to the roof open. It became apparent, though, that someone else was with me, considering an annoying shadow was streaked across my page.

"Whatcha drawing?"

I looked up and much to my surprise, I saw Jonouchi. Oh joy of joys. "Nothing," I said curtly and closed my notebook, shoving it back in my book bag.

"Geez, don't have a cow, Kaiba! I was just wondering," he replied, his eyes rolling, and then sat down next to me. He sat down_ right_ _next_ _to me_; this was going to be an irritating lunch. "So what're you doin' up here?"

I shot him a side-ways glance and picked up my lunch. "What does it look like, Mutt? I'm eating my lunch." I pulled out an apple and started eating it, trying my best to ignore him.

He started eating a sandwich and then decided to talk to me again. "Touchy, touchy."

I felt my eyebrow twitch. "Listen, Jonouchi. If you're gonna talk to me, at least swallow your food first. That's disgusting." I heard a very audible gulping sound and turned to look at him, half-expecting him to be choking on bologna. Instead, he grinned that stupid grin of his and pulled out a can of soda. I turned my head back to look straight ahead and took another bite of my apple. "So what are you doing up here? Did the nerd herd kick you out?" I asked, not even bothering to hide my amusement.

He growled like the dog that he is and drank more soda. "_No_. They're just all hyped up about Spring Break and where they're goin' with their families and junk," he replied and gazed straight ahead as I did. "I didn't really wanna listen to 'em yammer so I came up here."

"Oh," I said simply and watched him guzzle the carbonated sugar water out of the corner of my eye. He really _was_ disgusting.

"So are _you_ goin' anywhere?" he asked; I could feel his eyes on me and it made me somewhat uncomfortable.

I shrugged, chewing the bite of apple I'd just taken, and swallowed it. "Probably not. Mokuba's Spring Break is the week after ours so it would be pointless to go anywhere." I stared at my fruit and got up to throw it away, not feeling the urge to eat it anymore.

"Hey, you didn't even eat _half_ of it! Why're you throwin' it away?"

I turned and saw the mutt just staring at me, incredulously. Was it really that big of a deal? "Yeah, I'm not going to eat any more of it. There's no point in saving it."

"I'll eat it," Jonouchi said, pointing to himself as if I didn't already know.

My eyebrows furrowed at the thought of him eating after me and then I remembered his father was a deadbeat. They probably didn't have a lot of food and as nauseating as it sounded, he probably didn't mind finishing other people's food. Something in the pit of my stomach made me actually feel bad for him so I tossed him the apple. "Whatever."

He caught it with ease and just as he was about to take a bite, he stopped himself. "You ain't got any cooties, do ya?"

I stared at him with disbelief. Did he just seriously ask that? "_No_. Do I _look_ like I have cooties?" He opened his mouth to answer. "Don't answer that." I walked back and sat down next to him, him laughing to himself.

He prodded me with his elbow, still chuckling a little, and smiled at me. "I was just kiddin'. You gotta lighten up, Kaiba."

Before I could stop myself, I smiled—for a split second—but it was enough for that mutt to notice.

"Whoa, did you just smile? Me? Katsuya Jonouchi made the great Seto Kaiba _smile_?" He leaned forward slightly to look at my face so I turned it away, actually a bit embarrassed.

"Shut up, Jonouchi."

Still he continued. "No way. This is a momentous occasion!" the blond exclaimed after putting the fruit in his lap and wrapped an arm around my shoulders, leaning close to me and shooting a fist into the air.

I dared to look over at him and tried not to smile again, eventually failing because of how ridiculous he looked. "I didn't even know you knew that word—_momentous_. Seems a bit beyond you," I managed, attempting to sound as snarky as possible, and looked away once more.

"Don't change the subject, Kaiba," Jonouchi said and squeezed my shoulder, his smile becoming more annoying and more infectious. "We should celebrate this!"

"No. We shouldn't," I tried and took a crack at ignoring him, which was a feat in and of itself.

"Of course, we should! Picture it—" Jonouchi persisted, waving his free hand in front of us to 'set the scene'. "Us, out on the town, painting it red—all that jazz! It'll be fun!"

I leveled a stare at the blond and shook my head, laughing somewhat. "You're really weird."

"That may be so...but I'm fun!" he said, jostling me before pulling his arm back, and finally took a bite out of the apple I gave him. He chewed it with a smile.

I smirked and rolled my eyes, leaning forward on my elbows. "Whatever, Jonouchi." My gaze fell on the concrete 'ground' and I rested my head in my hand, my lips finally settling into a straight line. I listened idly to him devour the apple and sighed; all of a sudden, I felt lonely and I couldn't put my finger on as to why.

"Aren't you gonna eat anything else?"

His simple question snapped me out of my daze and I lifted my shoulders in a light shrug. "I'm not really hungry."

His eyes were on me, I could tell. "C'mon, Kaiba, eat something. You're thin enough as it is."

Did he actually care whether or not I ate enough? Or did he just want my food? Hmm... "I told you, Mutt. I'm not hungry." I grabbed my lunch and sat it on his lap, settling back into my leaning position. "Here, you eat it. I don't want it."

"No, this is _your_ lunch. _You_ need to eat it." Jonouchi tried to give me the food back but I just shoved it away. He was getting irritated; I could tell by the way he got closer to me and practically got in my face. "Am I gonna hafta feed you? Because I will if you're not gonna."

Was he being serious?

I sighed and took my lunch back, grabbing a container of yogurt and a spoon from the bag's contents. "Fine, if it'll shut you up," I said and shoved a spoonful of the strawberry-flavored goop into my mouth.

He leaned away from me with what I could ascertain was a smile and went back to eating his own lunch. After a minute or two, I finished the yogurt cup and tossed it into the trashcan from where we were sitting, surprised to hear a golf clap to my left. Something about that simple gesture actually made me happy; someone was paying attention to me and it wasn't because he _had_ to.

In the distance a bell rang, signaling the end of our lunch hour; had we really been out there that long? I saw Jonouchi stand up and throw away his lunch bag, stopping near the door. He turned around and stared at me. "Are you comin'?"

"Yeah, in a minute. You go on ahead," I replied as I tried to organize my things, keeping my gaze to anything but him.

"Okaaaay. If you say so." The door clicked open. "See ya, Moneybags." It slammed shut.

Finally I was by myself, surrounded by the silence I'd been hoping for, and for some reason, I didn't want it anymore. Being alone sounded—well, not to be redundant—lonely. Had Jonouchi's chance encounter really affected me that much?

I frowned at the thought and grabbed my things, chucking the rest of my lunch into the metal trashcan.

No, I won't let it get to me. I can't. I'm alone. I'm supposed to be alone.

[Tuesday]

Lunchtime again. I slowly climbed the steps up to the roof, my mind bringing thoughts of the previous day's lunch to the forefront. As much as I didn't want to admit it, I somewhat enjoyed the mutt's company yesterday, as trying as it was. I guess I had gotten so used to eating alone or just with Mokuba that I'd forgotten what it was like to be around someone completely different. I mean, _really_ different. Compared to me, Jonouchi's practically my complete opposite.

_Opposites attract_.

I blushed at the thought and shook it away. Stupid science. Screw science. Science is stupid.

Anyway—I was almost to the top of the steps when my stomach started to feel queasy. Not queasy like I'm going to blow chunks but a different kind of queasy. I don't think I've ever felt quite like that actually; I've heard of people that get sick to their stomachs when they're nervous but I highly doubt that's the case with me. Why in the hell should I be nervous?

I opened the door and walked out onto the roof, looking around as if I expected something to be there. Nothing was there, of course, but there was something disappointing about it.

I took my seat at my usual concrete block (they really should get benches or something up here) and pulled out my lunch. Just as I bit into my sandwich, the door to the roof clicked open; I looked up instinctively and saw none other than Jonouchi standing in the doorway. I'm sure I must have looked funny with my sandwich hanging out of my mouth because that mutt just started laughing at me—literally pointing and laughing. It annoyed me a little but at the same time, it would've been strange if he had reacted in any other way.

"Geez, Kaiba. That must be a damn good sandwich!" Jonouchi joked and took a seat next to me while I attempted to eat my food without embarrassing myself any further. "What is that? Roast beef?"

I nodded my head in reply and tried to chew my food faster, having taken a rather large bite unintentionally. I blame Jonouchi for that.

"Looks good. Better than mine anyway," he said and pulled a sandwich out of his bag, bologna from the looks of it. "So do you come up here every day?"

With a muffled 'mm-hmm', I nodded my head once more, still chewing my infernal sandwich.

The blond smirked and took a bite of his own sandwich, swallowing it after only a few chews. "Man, you're really taking your time with that thing! Do you need some help or something?" he joked and continued to watch me.

I shook my head furiously and swallowed a little of my food, my mouth _still _full. This was getting ridiculous.

"Hey, you know what's a funny word? Masticate."

I snorted out of surprise and nearly shot roast beef out of my nose—_not_ a pleasant feeling. Finally I gulped down the rest of my food and half-glared at him, my mouth completely giving away the fact that I wasn't really mad. "Y'know, your silly antics could've made me choke, Jonouchi," I said, clearing my throat slightly.

"I know the Heimlich maneuver. I could've saved you," he replied and grinned that goofy grin of his.

I rolled my eyes and grabbed my bottled water, taking a quick swig of the cold liquid. "You're lucky I only almost got sandwich lodged up my nose."

Jonouchi snickered and finished off half of his sandwich, dusting his hand off on his pants leg. "That would've been funny though."

I glared at him. "No, it wouldn't. It would've been painful—for both of us," I replied with a smirk. "You and I both know I would've pummeled you if that had come out my nose."

"Yeah, I know. Big, bad Kaiba's gonna beat me up," he said, waving his hands about sarcastically, his eyes focused on me. "That's nothin' new."

I barely breathed out a laugh and turned my attention back to my sandwich, this time making sure to take a much smaller bite. From there, it felt awkward. Maddeningly awkward. Finally after I finished half my sandwich and put the rest aside, I looked over at him. "So what are you doing up here again?"

Jonouchi glanced at me and took in a mouthful of grape soda. "My friends are talkin' about Spring Break again. It's all they ever talk about now," he replied with a sigh and slurped at the soda that had formed on top of the can. "It's startin' to get real annoying."

"I can imagine," I said, staring off ahead. There was another awkward silence after that and once again I broke it. "If you _could_ go on a vacation, where would you go?"

He looked over at me, seemingly amazed at my question. "If I could?" I nodded. He turned his head away from me and simply looked forward, his eyebrows lowering in reflection. After a moment, the blond replied, "I think I'd probably go to an amusement park...like Disneyland or something like that."

"Disneyland, huh? I've been there a few times," I replied with a nod, trying to remember exactly when the last time I had gone was.

"A few? Lucky rich boy." He scowled and leaned on his elbows, cradling his head in his hands. "As much as I'd like to go, there's no way I could afford it." He sighed loudly. "I'll probably never get to see Donald."

"As in Donald Duck? What, is he your favorite?" I asked, smirking, and watched his expression change from gloom to glee.

"Yeah, he's hilarious, especially his voice," Jonouchi replied, laughing a bit to himself. "I love it when he gets all frustrated and starts screaming."

I smirked. "I suppose that _is_ funny," I said, remembering something from when Mokuba and I were younger. "I actually taught myself how to talk like him just to get on Mokuba's nerves. He _hates_ Donald Duck...for whatever reason. I think he hates his—"

"Wait, hold on a second," the blond interrupted. He was staring right at me, his eyes somewhat wide, and leaned closer to me. "You can do the voice?"

Crap, did I actually say that? I did, didn't I?

I scratched at the back of my head, feeling quite embarrassed for divulging that kind of _information_. "I, uh, used to. I haven't done it in a while," I replied, hoping that Jonouchi would drop it. Please just drop it.

"Can you try?" he asked, which elicited a long sigh from myself, and his grin grew wider and wider. It was beginning to look _very_ creepy.

I rolled my eyes and then glared at him. "If I do this, you have to promise not to tell anyone," I explained, looking around to make sure no one else had snuck up to the roof. "There's no telling what kind of field day the media would have should I make a complete and utter fool of myself."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I promise. Now do the impression." Jonouchi leaned even closer and watched me expectantly, grinning his stupid grin.

"Fine." I cleared my throat, positioned an air pocket in my mouth—and started screaming like Donald Duck. It only lasted for maybe all of three seconds but that three seconds made the mutt's face light up, really light up. I don't think I've ever seen him look like that, in fact. Anyway, he continued to just stare at me with an ever bigger smile plastered on his face (I'm surprised it's physically possible) and proceeded to shake my arm.

"Do it again."

I furrowed my eyebrows out of irritation and shook his hand off me. "No, once is enough."

"Aw, c'mon, Kaiba! Just one more time!" He looked at me with his big, brown puppy dog eyes and stuck out his lower lip a little. (Could he be any more like Mokuba? Geez...) "_Please?_"

Just as I opened my mouth to say 'no', the bell rang; I smirked at the blond and grabbed my things. "No such luck, pup," I said, purposefully leaving my lunch where it was. "But you can have the rest of my lunch. Dogs like scraps, right?" I laughed as Jonouchi fumed and headed back downstairs, avoiding anything he might've thrown my way.

It really is fun teasing him. Maybe I'll continue this joke tomorrow when he—_if_ he comes by. Yeah, if. That's what I meant.

If.

[Wednesday]

Another boring day. Why am I not surprised? Really, the only events I look forward to during school are lunchtime and the last bell—lunchtime because I can get away from all those useless lectures and the people I don't care that much about, and the last bell should be obvious.

I made my way up to the roof yet again and to my surprise, Jonouchi was already there when I opened the door. He smiled when he saw me and waved; that's definitely something I'm not used to. I, by choice, sat next to him and then he proceeded in punching me in the arm. Really hard.

"That's for that scraps joke yesterday, Kaiba," he informed me, still smiling, and ignored my grumbling.

After rubbing my arm, I smirked slightly and pulled out my bottled water, taking a quick swig. "What? I thought you'd appreciate some quality food," I joked and watched him take a big bite out of his sandwich. Bologna again, I see.

"Oh, believe me, it was good. Compliments to the chef." He took another bite of the sandwich, his cheeks bulging as he chewed.

My eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Wait, you actually ate it?"

Jonouchi nodded and pulled out a can of orange soda, gulping down what I can only guess was about half the can. "Yeah, what'd you expect?" He took another bite of the sandwich, making a point to swallow it before talking again. Good boy. "I'm not exactly one to pass up free food, y'know."

"I should've guessed." I pulled a banana out of my bag and peeled it, keeping my eye on that mutt to make sure he didn't make any lewd jokes. He didn't to my amazement; I guess I'm the pervert here. "So what are you doing up here again? Your friends surely can't _still_ be talking about Spring Break."

He shrugged, finishing off his sandwich. "Well they mentioned it but they all have some test later today in their Chemistry class," the blond replied. "All they were doin' was studyin' so I thought I'd come bug you." He grinned and poked me in the arm he had punched earlier; I'm quite glad it didn't bruise or that would've hurt. "You don't mind, do ya?"

"Probably less than I should." I sighed, taking a bite of banana.

Jonouchi grinned. "I have that effect on people," he said, sounding quite proud of himself. "I grow on 'em."

I snickered somewhat as I thought of something funny. "So you're like a fungus?"

He half-glared at me and then rolled his eyes, drinking more soda. "Ha ha, very funny. Lemme guess. You thought of that all by yourself?"

I frowned a bit and then decided to mess with the blond a bit. "Gee thanks, Jonouchi. I was just trying to joke with you," I grumbled and then finished my banana. "Killjoy."

"Sarcasm, Kaiba! Sarcasm." He shook his head, laughing somewhat. "You really need to let loose, y'know. Don't take everything I say so seriously."

"Whatever."

Jonouchi frowned when he noticed I was 'annoyed' with him and tried to make conversation. "So, what do ya do for fun? Other than Duel Monsters, that is."

I smirked slightly. "Your mom."

Obviously I struck a nerve with him because he stood straight up, glaring down at me. "What did you say?"

"Now who's the one that can't take a joke?" I stared at him in disbelief and watched his features soften and the fists that he had raised fall.

"Dude, you have no idea how close I was to laying you out," Jonouchi said, chuckling as he spoke. "I was prepared to throw you off the building."

"You couldn't throw me off the building even if you tried," I challenged, thinking he wouldn't have the gall to pick me up and hurl me over the chain link fence.

He grinned boldly and stuck his hand out, motioning for me to get up; I complied and stood, staring down at him with my eyebrow ever so slightly cocked. "Alright, don't say ya didn't ask for it!" The blond lunged at me and wrapped his arms around my torso, trying his best to move me. I, of course, stood my ground—with a great deal of effort, mind you. In the end all he could manage to do was make me take a few steps back and even then, he looked pretty silly doing it—with his muscles straining and his head buried in my chest...his hair _did_ kind of smell good...Ah! What am I saying?

Finally, I decided to joke with him again. "You know all you're doing is essentially hugging me, right?"

Jonouchi laughed almost evilly into my chest—and started rubbing his hands up and down my back. "I know," he said coyly and even dared to slap my butt! Really, he did! He manhandled me!

I pushed him away, my face feeling as though it were on fire, and sat back down in defeat and mortification. I could not bring myself to even look at him; that's how red in the face I was.

He sat back down too and he stared at me; I could feel his eyes on me, burning holes into my profile. Finally he leaned forward on his elbows and looked away. "Well...this is awkward..."

"Yeah, a little bit," I replied, glancing at him out of the corner of my eye. The worst part about the whole situation was that I could still feel where his hand had hit me; that made me blush even more. What the hell possessed him to do that? I'm not sending out mixed signals, am I? Maybe I should just start talking again, make this less awkward. "Don't take this to heart, Mutt, but it's actually kind of nice having someone to talk to for once." I smiled lightly, happy that I'd actually made a prominent step in this thing called 'friendship'. Strange that I chose Jonouchi out of all people; I used to think he was just some dumb punk with big hair. Now I've added 'nice' to my description. "You're not as annoying as you used to be," I added just for laughs.

"Thank you?" Jonouchi laughed and patted me on the back. "I guess you're not so bad yourself but ya really gotta stop this whole dog thing."

I smirked. "I only do it to ruffle your feathers, Jonouchi. I don't really mean anything by it."

"So lemme get this straight. You've been teasin' me and makin' fun of me and pullin' all this shit because you like to _bug_ me? Is that it?" He stared at me so earnestly that it was almost too difficult not to start laughing.

"Yeah, in a nutshell," I replied with a shrug.

The blond leaned his head back slightly, looking up at the sky, and then turned his head slightly to look at me. "You sure do have a funny way of showin' you like me," he said with a grin and then leaned forward again, breathing out a laugh.

I blushed lightly at his statement. Was I that transparent? "I never said anything about liking you."

In the distance the sound of the lunch bell echoed up to us, Jonouchi smiling at me kindly as he stood up. Still looking at me as he picked up his things, he said, "You didn't have to," with a wink and made his way to the stairwell, his hand rising up in a wave as he went through the doorway.

Something about the way he looked at me and the way he said those words made my heart beat faster—but when Jonouchi winked, it skipped a beat. I could feel my cheeks burning with some emotion unbeknownst to me and no matter how much I willed it away, the feeling remained.

What...is this? This can't be—_no_, it isn't. I refuse to believe it's—

[Thursday]

After much reflection, I have decided that maybe I'm a bit _excited_ at the idea of making a friend...or at least that's what I like to tell myself. I actually found myself asking the chef to make me more food this morning, enough for two people. I suppose some part of me is afraid that Jonouchi will change his mind— that he won't want to be friends with me unless I can give him something in return. In reality what I'm trying to do is win him over.

With both lunches in hand, I made my way up the concrete stairs to the roof and took a seat at my usual block, setting the food I had my chef make for Jonouchi next to me. I'm somewhat excited to see his reaction; my guess is that at first he'll think it's a joke or something like that but then he'll smile when he realizes what I did. I hope that's how he'll react anyway.

I waited for about five minutes before I started eating my own lunch and before I knew it, the bell rang again, signifying the end of lunch. As I sat there frozen in place, my face began to contort from a look of surprise to one of fury. "That little—I can't _believe_ him! How dare he not eat lunch with me!" I seethed, grabbing both lunches and hurling them in the metal trashcan. "That's the last time I'm fuckin' nice to that guy. Gah!"

Vehemence became me that day and when I went to the one class I had with Jonouchi, I realized my anger was misplaced. He wasn't even there.

This realization gave me some relief but I was still curious as to why he didn't come to school at all. Perhaps I'll ask him tomorrow.

[Friday]

Friday rolled around without a hitch, and upon reaching the final bell, it became apparent that Jonouchi was absent yet again. Normally I wouldn't really care one way or another but from seeing the way his friends acted, I could tell something serious had happened.

I managed to find the group after classes all standing around and chatting; I, of course, eavesdropped.

"Do you think we should get him something? I'd feel bad visiting without a present," Yugi said, his hands wrapped around the straps of his backpack.

"I think he'd like that," Anzu replied and smiled reassuringly at the shorter male. She turned her attention to Honda. "Do you remember where he's staying?"

The brunette nodded. "Yeah, he's at the one down by KaibaCorp. I can never remember the name of that hospital," he said, laughing uneasily." I'm sure it's something obvious."

"It's the Domino Medical Center, you dummy," Anzu replied, her eyes narrowed and her lips drawn straight. "Now let's get going already. I'd like to visit Katsuya _before_ visiting hours are over." The two males nodded and without any more bickering, they walked off in the direction of KaibaCorp.

I'm not sure how long I stood there. I couldn't move, couldn't think, couldn't breathe. This whole time Jonouchi's been in the hospital and I've been cursing at him for being a jerk. An emotion I hadn't felt in a long while surfaced—guilt; I felt extremely guilty for some reason. Another emotion—worry. I was worried about Jonouchi. Man, I've really gotten soft.

A million ideas flew through my mind as I contemplated what to do.

_Should I visit him? _Yes, I should. No. I _need_ to visit him; if I see him, I'll know he's okay. Then I'll be okay.

_What'll I do when I see him?_ I should be nonchalant. I don't need him thinking that I've been worried since Thursday...or would he like that? Maybe I'll let him know I was a teensy bit worried about him just so he'll know that I care.

_Do I care?_ Of course, I do...how can I not care?

_Why do I care? _Because—

_Because?_ ...he's my friend.

Katsuya Jonouchi is my friend.

[Later that day]

After I went home and had a bit of a meltdown, I decided that I would not go to work today. My employees don't really need me there and even if they did, it's not like they're so helpless that they cannot pick up a phone or send me an email. If that _is_ the case, I may need to find better people to work for me...

Anyway, I changed clothes first (black button-up, black slacks, black belt, black shoes...geez, I sound like an emo kid...) and then dropped by a local store in town to pick up a gift for Jonouchi. It's nothing big but I think it'll put a smile on his face. I can hope at least.

I settled on driving myself to the hospital where Jonouchi was staying, dropping by KaibaCorp to inform them of my absence from work on the way. Once I got to Domino Medical Center, I realized I had no idea which room he was in. I managed to get one of the nurses to finally tell me which room I could find him in (I swear these people are incompetent) and made my way to the elevator. As I walked inside the old metal box, I felt quite out of place. It's not like Jonouchi and I are close; I could hardly say that. He doesn't _need_ me to visit him. I guess when it comes down to it, _I'm_ the one that needs this visit.

At long last I got to the second floor and turned down one of the hallways, following the arrows that make it blatantly obvious where I'm going. After a minute or two of walking, I made my way to his room, Room 201. I quietly opened the door just in case he was sleeping and when I turned around, I saw him and froze.

Jonouchi was curled up in a ball, crying—no, _sobbing_. His arms were wrapped tightly around one of his pillows and his eyes were squeezed painfully shut. He buried his head into the white mass as I took a step toward him. Had he seen me?

I eased my way over to the bed, noting that he didn't share the room with anyone else, and sat the green gift bag on a nearby table next to some flowers and magazines. When I got closer to the blond, I could see how badly he was shaking; it was truly heartbreaking.

I pursed my lips and shook his shoulder gently, his body ceasing its trembling under my hand. "Hey..."

Slowly Jonouchi loosened his grip on the pillow and turned his face to look at me; despite how hurt (both physically and emotionally) he was, he smiled at me. "Hey." He sat up in bed and adjusted his pillows as I pulled up a chair. That's when I finally noticed the cuts and bruises on his arms and the gash near the left side of his mouth; something about this image gave me a sick feeling, like the kind of sick feeling you get before receiving some bad news.

"How did you know I was here?"

His soft voice brought me out of my thoughts and I smiled lightly. "I overheard your friends talking," I started and saw him look somewhat upset. "Y'know, talking about visiting you. I heard what's-her-face say you'd be at this hospital so I thought I'd pay you a visit."

He grinned a bit and sighed. "Well, thank you." His voice trailed off as his eyes darted to his lap, his fingers finagling with his bed sheets. "I appreciate it. I really do..."

"I'm glad," I replied, watching his face carefully as he wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand. As much as I wanted to ask him what he was doing here in the first place, I figured he probably didn't want to talk about it. Maybe if I'm lucky, he'll confide in me. "I, uh—I was worried about you, Jonouchi."

The blond looked up from the sheets and stared at me incredulously. "R-really?"

I nodded and smirked, feeling my cheeks flush lightly. "At first I thought you were ditching me at lunch but when you didn't come to school for two days in a row, I got rather concerned," I admitted, scratching at the nape of my neck. "The way your friends acted didn't really help either."

Jonouchi frowned. "Yeah, they kinda worry over nothin' sometimes," he said and then smirked a little. "Well, I guess this isn't nothin' but you know what I mean." He fidgeted somewhat. "I'm just glad they visited me before they all left."

"Left? You mean for Spring Break?" My eyebrows furrowed as I watched him nod, his smile now saddening.

"Yeah. Every one of 'em went on their little family vacations and I'm stuck in this stupid hospital," he muttered, his features twisting in anguish. Tears began to drip down his reddened cheeks and his chin quivered as he tried not to let the pain escape. He pulled his knees up to his chest, jamming his hands into his tangled mane. He spoke again, his voice straining and cracking. "All my friends left me a-and I don't even have any family here! My fucking dad got arrested for doin' this to me and my mom—she said she didn't wanna take me in unless she absolutely _had_ to!" His whole body shook as he sobbed. "I-I'm alone...I'm completely alone..."

His words—each one stabbed at me. Before I knew it, I got to my feet and wrapped my arms around him, feeling him curl into me as he continued to cry. His hands clung to me, his fingers twisted tightly around the fabric of my shirt as if to say 'don't let go'. I ran a hand down his back as I maintained my hold on his shoulders, my head turning toward his. I nudged his ear with the tip of my nose and spoke through his blond tresses. "You're _not_ alone." I felt a lump form in my throat and my heart ache as I said this; I couldn't stand to see him this way. "You have me. I'm here for you...Katsuya."

I heard his breath hitch and he pulled me closer. "D—do you mean that?" he murmured, his voice muffled by my shirt.

I smiled at him even though I knew he couldn't see and squeezed him lightly. "Yeah...I do," I replied gently. "I'll do whatever I can to help you. I mean it."

Jonouchi slowly pulled away, just enough to look at me, his brown eyes narrowed (whether out of pain or doubt, I don't know). "Why? Why would you help _me_?"

"Because," I began and then grinned, "you're my friend."

I guess he really liked my response because after I said it, he caught me in another tight hug, his arms around my shoulders this time and one hand cradling the back of my neck. After we sat like that for a few minutes, Jonouchi spoke up. "I never thought I'd see the day when I was friends with _the_ Seto Kaiba." He pulled away from me and laughed a bit. "You better not back outta this just 'cause I'm not cryin' anymore."

I smirked. "I won't. What kind of person do you think I am?"

He smirked, too. "Well considering what just happened, I guess I gotta say you're a nice one." He paused for a second and then added a cheeky '_Seto_'.

I blushed vividly, remembering I had called him by his first name, and tried not to let my emotions show (failing miserably, I might add). "I try," I said almost in a mumble and decided to change the subject. "I got you something."

"You didn't have to," he said, his expression surprised, and watched me grab the gift bag from the table.

"I know but I thought it'd make you smile at least." I sat the bag on his lap, my stomach churning out of nervousness (yes, I will admit that I was nervous), waited for him to look inside. "It's not much. I just thought you'd—"

"Donald!" Jonou—I mean, Katsuya quickly snatched the stuffed toy from out of the sea of tissue paper and held it up in the light, his smile wide as he breathed out a chuckle. "This is awesome!"

My cheeks flushed yet again and this time _I_ was the one who fidgeted. "So you like it? It's not too...girly?"

Katsuya pulled the doll against his stomach and leveled a smart-alecky stare at me. "Well...I'm not exactly gonna go around tellin' people about me havin' a stuffed animal," he said and then smiled, "but I do like it."

I sighed softly, trying not to seem too relieved. "Well, good," I replied and leaned forward on the bed as an idea popped into my head. "Y'know, since I'm not really doing anything for Spring Break and you want to go to Disneyland—"

"No, no! You don't have to do that!" Katsuya interrupted, waving his hands around in protest.

"I know but I want to." I watched his face turn red out of frustration and embarrassment so I decided to cut him a deal. "Listen, if you don't want to go right now, we don't have to but I _would_ like to take you sometime."

Katsuya sighed, a smirk playing on his lips as he did this. "You're gonna make me go one way or another, aren't ya?"

I nodded with a grin. "Pretty much. You know me; I don't take 'no' for an answer."

"In that case, I _definitely_ want my own room," he said, laughing like a hyena.

I blushed when I realized what he meant and shook my head. "You're such a pervert, you know that?"

"Yeah, I know but would you want me any other way?"

I smiled as I leaned away from the bed, getting to my feet. "I suppose not," I replied and turned toward the door; that's when Jonouchi grabbed my hand. Not my shirt or my arm. My hand.

"Hold on a second!" he said almost desperately and I looked back at him. He really did look pathetic. "You're not leavin' already, are ya?"

I smirked, breathing a soft laugh out of my nostrils, and shook my head. "Of course not." I turned my body toward his again, squeezing his hand lightly, and then grinned wider. "I'm just going to bribe some hospital staff into letting me stay the night." I gazed at Katsuya as he sighed, smiling awkwardly; I poked his nose with my free hand. "I'm not going anywhere, Katsuya."

He blushed as I said this and I squeezed his hand once more before I let go.

"Thank you."

I turned around, not sure if I had actually heard him, and saw him smiling. "For what?"

"For saving me, that's what."

* * *

I hope you guys enjoyed "Savior"! If you can, stop and _**review**_ (no flames please!); I would really appreciate it!

**Bonus: **You get a cookie if you can find the Golden Girls and Charlie & the Chocolate Factory references!

**P.S.** I referenced Bouguereau earlier in the fic and in case you don't know of him, you should look him up! (I'd post a link but Fanfiction hates me, lol)


	2. Drive My Soul

**Pairing:** Katsuya x Seto

**Warnings:** There may be _some_ coarse language in this fiction that may not be suitable for younger readers.

**Other Warnings:** This is yaoi so if you don't like it, read it anyway!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters or any of the rights to Yu-Gi-Oh! or Left 4 Dead.

Oh hi there! It's been a while...a long while. I do apologize for leaving this poor story to the wayside. I got caught up in school and work; I know that's no excuse but it's mine. Anyway I decided to start working on this series again, mostly because I started reading puppyshipping fics again. This story is much longer than the last one, so hopefully that's okay with you guys. I'm already working on the next one and it's longer than this one and I'm not even halfway through! That one is probably going to be a two- or three-parter. I'll just have to see how long it is when I'm finished.

Also this story does mention a video game by the name of Left 4 Dead (I write fics for that one too, haha). It's not super integral to the story so that can probably be easily overlooked. I mostly included it because 1. I enjoy playing that game and 2. It was something to give the boys some common ground.

I apologize if anyone gets OOC. It's been a while! Please don't hold that against me! :)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy _Drive My Soul_!

* * *

Shakespeare, however eloquent, tries upon the ears of students, becoming the bane of their existence throughout most of their schooling; for Katsuya, it was no different. It was time for English class yet again and they were studying Shakespeare's _King Lear_. The blond regularly did not pay attention in class and often opted to doodle or write in his notebook until the bell rang. Today, though, he actually listened to the lecture; rather a quote caught his attention.

"_It is the stars, _

_ The stars above us, govern our conditions."_

He contemplated the excerpt and vaguely heard the teacher say something about fate. _Fate...that's somethin' I'd like to know about,_ Katsuya thought and cradled his head in his left hand. A reoccurring notion he seemed to have was about fate and he sometimes wondered what his fate was. He considered his life as it was; was it _supposed_ to be like this or was he meant for something more? Was there something missing and if so, what? Was this the Katsuya he was destined to be? Who was the real Katsuya? None of his questions went answered and this frustrated him greatly.

_Maybe there's somethin' missin'...what though?_ _I got a family—well, that could always be better,_ the blond thought and glanced off to the side, watching as Yugi and Honda read their assigned parts in the play. _I got friends—good friends. I guess if anything, I'm missin'_—

"_Mine enemy's __**dog**__,  
Though he had bit me, should have stood that night  
Against my fire._"

Katsuya instinctively looked back at the sound of the familiar voice, grimacing at his emphasis of that one word; the source was none other than Seto Kaiba. After reading his part, the brunet turned his attention to Katsuya, a smirk playing along his lips. This in turn made the blond narrow his eyes in annoyance, turning back around in his seat. _God! Even when readin' Shakespeare, he gets me! That jerk,_ he inwardly shouted, gripping his pencil tightly in his hand. Katsuya listened to his heart thump in his chest for a few minutes, realizing how much it raced when his rival was involved. _Why's it gotta be _that _guy that gets me all wound up?_

The blond considered the circumstances and admitted to himself that, really, Seto Kaiba was the only person that could make him feel that way; any situation they were in together eventually led to some petty argument and almost always Katsuya was overcome by his adrenaline and sheer exhilaration. Sometimes, he lived just to feel that way, hoping that the young CEO would bust his chops one way or another; this, of course, he would never actually tell any of his friends about. He didn't think they would honestly understand.

In the heat of the moment, Katsuya ripped a sheet of paper out of his notebook and quickly scribbled 'I hate you' on the first line, sloppily folding the paper afterward. He then looked back at Seto (just one seat diagonally behind him to the left) and slipped the paper onto his desk when the teacher turned her back. Before turning back around, he made sure to deliver the same smirk the brunet had given him earlier and even after he was facing the front, he continued to smile.

A minute later, the note was tossed onto the blond's desk, which from the looks of it had obviously been refolded more evenly. Katsuya lowered the note to his lap and gingerly unfolded it. Under his own message, Seto had written 'I hate you too'; this elicited a quiet laugh from the scrappier male. He decided to have a little fun with the note and wrote a quote from a video game he had been playing for the past few months. 'Is there anything you _don't_ hate?' was his message.

Once again he slipped it onto the CEO's desk, still quite amused by his clever reply; he, of course, figured Seto wouldn't even get it. Like clockwork, the note reappeared on his desk. Katsuya unfolded the paper and found his response.

'You know what I don't hate? I don't hate vests.'

With his eyes wide, Katsuya slowly turned around to look at Kaiba and looked back at the paper. In an instant, the blond was on his feet and pointing an accusing finger at the other male, who merely stared at him in confusion. "_You_ play Left 4 Dead?!"

"Mr. Jonouchi! Please sit down and stop yelling in my classroom!" the teacher demanded. She opened her mouth once more as the teen turned his head to dumbly gaze at her and only managed 'I said' before the class bell rang. With a sigh, she backed down and watched her students pile out of the classroom, wishing them a good weekend before gathering up her own things.

Katsuya, on the other hand, still stood in his place, which was making Seto especially uneasy. The young CEO closed his notebook and put it away in his book bag, raising an eyebrow at the disturbed blond. "Are you going to just stand there pointing at me like some...well, Pointer?" he asked as he stood up, smirking at his own dog joke.

The other male finally snapped out of his trance of sorts and glared. "Very funny, Kaiba," he replied, rolling his eyes, and then smiled. "That doesn't change the fact that ya obviously play somethin' _other_ than Duel Monsters."

"So? I play many games that aren't Duel Monsters," Seto said matter-of-factly and eyed the blond. "Are you really that surprised?"

Katsuya nodded. "Well, yeah! I can picture ya playin' chess and Sudoku and all those other nerdy games but not Left 4 Dead!" He squeezed between the desks and stood in front of Seto, actually interested in what he had to say for once. "Are ya any good?"

The brunet ignored the other male's insults, considering he _did_ play chess and Sudoku, and crossed his arms. "I would like to think so," he replied with a smirk. "I play mostly on Advanced but since the computers are such idiots sometimes, I can't really survive on Expert." Seto sighed lightly. "I'd let Mokuba play with me but I don't really want him playing violent video games at such a young age."

The blond grinned widely. "Then let _me_ play with ya. I usually play on Advanced too so we would probably make a good team."

Seto rolled his eyes. "Please. You'd probably off me the first chance you get," he said and pushed past the slightly shorter male.

Katsuya quickly leaped over the desks and gathered his things, shoving all the loose items into his backpack. "C'mon, Kaiba! I wouldn't do that!" He followed closely behind the CEO, finally catching up to him. "Seriously, I wanna play with ya."

"And why do you want to do that?" The brunet narrowed his eyes dangerously and stopped in his tracks. "Are you looking for some kind of handout? If that's the case, you're barking up the wrong tree."

Katsuya ignored the insults this time and gazed at him earnestly. "It's no fun playin' by myself and it's kinda cool that we actually have somethin' in common...y'know, other than Duel Monsters."

"Well, you're right about the no fun bit but I hardly think it's _cool_ sharing an interest with you," Seto replied, seemingly unfazed by the blond's request. "I'm completely fine with playing games alone." _That's what I'm used to_, he thought and felt his own facade falter. _That's what I am._

The other male smiled sympathetically upon seeing a glimpse of Seto's sad expression and tried not to let his concern show. "Why play alone when you can have someone play with ya? That's part of the fun of havin' a multiplayer mode," Katsuya said, a catlike smile forming along his lips. "...Unless yer scared of a little competition."

His statement caught Seto's attention and he smirked as well. "I am most certainly not afraid of going up against the likes of you, Mutt. Furthermore, I'm positive that I would be the one covering your ass in the line of fire."

"Yeah, right! Yer gonna be the one runnin' away with his tail between his legs," Katsuya replied, amused that he himself had made a dog joke at his supposed 'master'.

"Well we'll see about that," Seto said and turned toward the front of the school, glancing back at the blond. He snapped his fingers and pointed to the spot to his right. "Come, Mutt."

The blond grumbled and did as he was instructed; however, he was inwardly happy that he had tricked the iron-hearted Seto Kaiba into playing a game with him and this time it wasn't a children's card game.

* * *

The chill of the crisp autumn air hit Katsuya as he and Seto exited the limousine; for the first time in a long time, the blond was actually grateful to be in his rival's presence. Who would pass up riding in a fancy car—a fancy car with a heater and stocked mini-fridge no less?

The two climbed the stairs and they were greeted immediately by Mokuba after Seto opened the door. Although he was happy to see his brother, the darker haired Kaiba stared at Katsuya curiously. "What're _you_ doing here?" he asked after closing the front door.

"Geez, way to make a guy feel welcome, kiddo," Katsuya replied sarcastically.

Mokuba narrowed his eyes and eyed the blond. "That still doesn't answer my question."

Seto cleared his throat to get his brother's attention. "I invited him over. Simple as that." He looked over at Katsuya and turned his body toward the staircase, motioning for the blond to follow. "I have an Xbox in my room so we can just play in there."

The smaller boy's mouth gaped open for a moment before he ran after the two. "Hey, wait a second!" he called, forcing himself in front of them. "Let me get this straight. You invited _Katsuya Jonouchi_ over to play _video games_?"

The brunet grimaced; it sounded so uncharacteristic of him when someone else said it out loud. Before he could reply, Katsuya butted in. "Don't say it like I'm some kinda disease or somethin'," he almost whined. "Besides, what's wrong with that? Can't me and yer bro have a little fun without bein' interrogated?"

Mokuba smirked. "I guess it depends on what kind of fun you wanna have with him."

The two older boys blushed vividly and this time Seto spoke up. "Don't you have homework you should be doing, Mokuba?"

"Nope! I finished it in class today," he replied with a big grin much to the chagrin of his older brother. "Can I play with you guys?"

Katsuya leaned forward and ruffled the smaller boy's hair. "No way! This game's for big boys and yer brother doesn't want ya to get traumatized or nothin'."

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "A game for big boys, huh?" he said more to himself and then turned his eyes to the older Kaiba. "Seto, if you and your little 'girlfriend' wanna have _alone_ time, I don't care. Just keep it down, okay?" He stuck his tongue out at the two of them and ran off toward the kitchen, leaving Seto and Katsuya standing there in embarrassment.

The teens' faces both glowed with a brilliant red hue as they tried not to make eye contact with each other. "...note to self: unplug the TV, home school Mokuba, and dispose of his so-called friends," Seto said in a low voice and frowned. "I gotta nip that in the bud before he turns into some kind of pervert."

Katsuya patted the CEO's shoulder. "I think it might be a little late for that," he said with a slight laugh.

"Ugh, don't remind me. It's bad enough he insinuated that we were gonna...well, you know."

"I know! Where's he get off callin' me_ your_ girlfriend?" Katsuya complained and followed Seto as he started up the stairs. "I think you and I _both_ know I'd be the boyfriend in that situation."

The brunet glanced back, his eyebrows furrowed. "Why in the hell would _you_ be the boyfriend? _I'm_ the provider here!"

"That doesn't matter! A girlfriend can totally provide for her boyfriend," the blond countered as the two reached the top of the stairs. "Now what _does_ matter is manhood—" He laughed lightly and raised an eyebrow at Seto. "And I've got plenty of it."

The CEO rolled his eyes. "I'll believe it when I see it."

Katsuya's cheeks flushed slightly as he followed behind. "Well, I _would_ show ya but that would be totally gay," he said, trying not to sound any bit nervous, and attempted to be his normal, juvenile self. "But I think I could be persuaded with a little moolah if y'know what I'm sayin'."

Seto scoffed as he stopped in front of the largest set of doors in the hallway, smirking at the blond. "I'm sure you could but here's the problem with that little scheme of yours: I don't want to see your dick that badly, Mutt." He twisted the knob and pushed the door open, closing it after Katsuya wandered in; honestly he was expecting the other boy to 'ooh' and 'aah' at his lush room but was disappointed when the reaction never came. Seto shrugged it off and eyed him closely, not sure what he was thinking.

Katsuya laughed lightly to himself as he looked around, turning his attention back to the CEO after a moment. "So ya admit that ya _do _wanna see it!" the shorter male said candidly, his grin wide as he leaned against the door.

The brunet's cheeks flushed and he sent a glare to his rival. "Don't make a mountain out of a molehill, you twit," he grumbled and motioned over to his entertainment cabinet. "Now can we just play the game and stop talking about your so-called manhood?"

"Aw, but I wanted to swap dick stories with ya!" the blond joked as he walked over beside Seto, the CEO grimacing as he was sent a telltale smile. "Anyway, let's do this, Kaiba! Let's kick some zombie ass!"

Seto opened up the cabinet and turned on the television and Xbox. "Well, _technically_ they're not zombies," he corrected as he handed Katsuya a controller and sat down on the floor.

Katsuya sat down as well and sneered slightly. "Okay, okay let's kick some _Infected_ ass," he replied in a sarcastic tone; he turned his attention to his controller and admired it. "These are some nice controllers ya got here."

"Wireless is the way to go." The young CEO laughed somewhat as he skipped past the opening movie. "Which level do you wanna play? I'm up for anything."

"Uh, how 'bout we start with the No Mercy campaign? It'll be good practice," he replied. The blond sat his controller down and got to his feet, wandering over near the door.

"What are you doing?"

Katsuya glanced back with a smile. "I'm lookin' for the light switch. Playin' in the dark is way more fun," he said just before he flipped the switch in the 'Off' position. He made his way back to his spot on the floor and picked up his controller; he nudged Seto with his elbow. "Better, right?"

Seto shrugged his shoulders and smirked. "Oh, yeah, it's much better. Now it's a lot harder to see that face of yours."

"Ha ha, very funny." The blond rolled his eyes and watched Seto set up the level; a thought occurred to him just then. "So who do ya normally play as?"

"Francis," Seto replied simply and eyed the shorter teen.

"Oh, yeah? Any reason?" Katsuya asked sincerely, wondering what made the teen multi-millionaire pick a bearded biker of all people.

The brunet pursed his lips for a moment, looking as if he was thinking, and shrugged once more. "I don't know. I suppose I like how hard-headed and brash he is—that and he's probably the funniest out of all of them," he admitted, inwardly self-conscious that he had shared that little tidbit with Katsuya.

"Yeah, I see what ya mean." Katsuya leaned forward on his elbows and cupped his head in his right hand, turning his attention back to the CEO. "I like playin' as Louis. He's always focused on what needs to be done and he's serious—I like that," he mused and nodded his head slightly. "And I think guys in suits are pretty cool."

Seto blushed somewhat at the last comment the blond made; if it were any other day of the week, he'd be wearing a suit right now. _Does he think I'm cool?_ he wondered, thankful that it was too dark for Katsuya to see his reddened cheeks. "Yeah, I like playing as him too sometimes," he said mildly and turned his attention back to the screen. "Let's go with those characters and get this started."

"Aye, aye, captain," Katsuya said jokingly as he and Seto chose their characters and started the level.

An hour or so went by before they had finished the campaign, both boys' hands shaking as their characters flew off to safety in a helicopter. Seto sat his controller down and watched the game stats scroll up the screen, not bothering to look at the blond as he spoke to him. "That wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be."

The other male turned his head and smirked at the CEO. "See? I told ya I wouldn't off ya or nothin'," he said and nudged him in the arm. "Ya gotta trust me, Moneybags."

The brunet scoffed, turning his gaze toward Katsuya. "Yeah, I suppose it wouldn't _kill_ me," he replied and looked back at the screen, suddenly feeling a bit inept. _What should I do now? It's weird enough as it is with him even _being_ here, _Seto thought to himself and glanced back to the other. "So, um...do you want to play another round?"

Katsuya shrugged lightly. "Eh, I kinda need to do my homework," the blond said with a slight frown. "I'm behind in one of my classes so my teacher's lettin' me do a little extra credit..."

"Oh...I see," Seto said in a low voice, trying not to let the smidgen of disappointment show through.

Ever being a people person, Katsuya picked up on the CEO's tone and smiled a little. "We can play later though. I just really wanna get this outta the way."

The brunet barely smiled and nodded his head, getting to his feet to put away the controllers. "I guess school _does_ come first," he said as he turned off the television and Xbox. He paused momentarily, his hands on the doors of the cabinet and his eyes not daring to look at the other male. "You know, you can come over tomorrow to play...i-if you want to, that is..."

_Why did I stutter? Seto Kaiba does _not_ stutter!_

The blond grinned more as he too got up and stood next to the CEO, patting his shoulder. "Yeah, sure! Sounds good to me!" he said almost enthusiastically. "What time do ya want me to come over?"

Seto turned his eyes to Katsuya and just looked at him. "I...I hadn't thought about that." He frowned and looked off in thought, not noticing the blond wander off toward the door; finally he looked back up, surprised to find the other boy several feet away. "What? Are you leaving?"

Katsuya laughed lightly and shook his head, flipping on the lights. "No, I was turnin' on the lights. Ya got a problem with that?"

The brunet smirked and finally closed the cabinet doors, feeling a bit silly. "Oh. No, I don't," he said, scratching at the back of his head. _Why am I being so...so...lame today? It's just Jonouchi— no one important,_ he thought and frowned inwardly. _No... That's not quite right..._

"_Okay_...if ya say so," Katsuya said as he looked at Seto oddly and walked over beside him once again. "Hey, you okay?"

Seto looked up, realizing that he had been staring off into space, and nodded shallowly. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said plainly. "I guess I'm just a little out of it today." He smirked and tried to hide the fact that he felt incredibly awkward. "I'm not used to _dog_-sitting."

The blond narrowed his eyes and scowled, turning on his heels to retrieve his backpack from the floor. "That never gets old with ya, does it?" he asked exasperatedly.

"Not when I can get you all riled up," the CEO replied with a pompous smile.

"There's better ways to do that, y'know." Katsuya rolled his eyes as he sat his backpack down, pulling out the note they had passed, and scribbled something on the folded sheet. He threw his pencil back in the bag and handed the paper to Seto, still frowning slightly.

Seto stared at the note, his eyebrows furrowing as he gazed at the digits, and then at Katsuya. "What's this?"

"It's my phone number, duh." The blond smirked and headed toward the door. "Just call me when ya want me to come over."

"Oh, I see," he replied, blushing softly. He ignored the fact that just the act of being given a phone number made his heart beat just a little bit faster but this—this was _Jonouchi's_ phone number. Why would this number of all numbers make him that much more jubilant? Seto shook off the flood of thoughts that came to mind and grinned at the blond boy. "I'll be sure to do just that."

Katsuya smiled as he turned the doorknob and looked back at the CEO before he left. "I'll see ya tomorrow then."

The brunet gulped lightly at the phrase and merely waved as the other male departed. His characteristically snide smile turned soft and he considered what had just happened. He had invited Katsuya Jonouchi into his home willingly and asked him to come back the very next day. What surprised him was how eager the blond seemed about the whole thing.

_Doesn't he hate me? Why would someone that hates me want to be around me? That doesn't make any sense at all...but then again it's Jonouchi..._

Perhaps even more astounding was how Seto just allowed the whole thing to happen. He let himself be swayed by the pup and he actually enjoyed himself. He had fun with Katsuya and the idea that he would be back—that's the part that excited him most. He truly looked forward to seeing him tomorrow.

The young CEO stared at the folded up piece of paper and the ten digit number, his cheeks flushing once more. He had never gotten someone's phone number before—not a guy's anyway. The phone numbers he usually got were from girls, promiscuous girls at that, and so naturally he associated the act with sex. His mind managed to put two and two together and he blushed vividly at the result.

Seto ran his hand through his short brown locks and tried to think of something else—_anything_ else. "I'm going to kill Jonouchi," he muttered to himself, blaming his sudden perverted outburst on the blond's momentary influence. He grimaced as he breathed a sigh out of his nose and walked toward the door. "Maybe working is a better option..."

He turned the doorknob and immediately saw his younger brother staring back at him, his arms folded firmly across his chest. Seto's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at the shorter male and tried not to falter under his sibling's accusing gaze. "What?"

"I should be asking _you_ that," the raven-haired boy replied and cocked an eyebrow. "What is going on with you, Seto?"

"What are you talking about, Mokuba?" Seto asked, although a part of him knew how the boy would reply.

Mokuba sighed out of exasperation. "I'm talking about this _thing _with Katsuya. _I_ was under the impression that you hated the guy and then you come home with him. I passed him in the hallway and you know what he said to me?" He paused for a moment to see if Seto would say anything; he didn't, of course. "'See you tomorrow'. _See you tomorrow_, Seto? Who are you and what did you do with my brother?"

Seto rolled his eyes and pushed past his little brother, heading toward his office. "Mokuba, just drop it."

The boy pulled Seto's door closed and chased after him. "No way! This is big!" he said as he managed to catch up to the taller Kaiba. "I mean, how can you expect me to ignore the fact that you're hanging out with Katsuya?"

"We're not 'hanging out'," the CEO replied, emphasizing his statement with air quotes.

Mokuba stepped in front of his brother, put his hands on his hips and raised an eyebrow. "Then what would _you_ call it?"

Seto stared at the raven haired boy for a moment before bothering to reply, "I call it 'none of your business', Mokuba. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to get some work done." He ruffled his brother's hair as he stepped into his office, earning a confused look from the other.

"None of my business? We'll see about that..." Mokuba murmured as his eyes narrowed and he turned on his heels in the direction of his own room. "You can't hide this from me, big brother."

* * *

Katsuya ambled quickly up the long and winding driveway toward the Kaiba mansion, having made it through the front gate quite easily. Seto had called him just before noon, promising refreshments for coming a bit early in the day. The blond wasn't complaining though; his stomach was the irritable one. He rang the doorbell and he was greeted once more by Mokuba. "Hiya, kiddo. Can I come in?"

Mokuba sneered and motioned the older boy in. "I would say 'no' but I'm pretty sure Seto would kick my butt," he said, leading Katsuya toward the dining room. "I hope pizza's okay. Seto was going to have the chef make some weird sandwiches but I figured you'd prefer something...less weird."

"Good thinkin'," Katsuya said with a smile. "Yer brother doesn't do this whole havin' friends over thing much, does he?"

The younger boy shook his head. "Seto doesn't exactly have friends."

The blond frowned, shoving his hands into his jeans pockets. Before he could reply, the older Kaiba came into view; he was arranging pizza boxes and cans of soda on the long dinner table.

"Your guest is here, Seto," Mokuba said plainly.

Seto looked up suddenly from what he was doing and then straightened. "So he is," he said and then turned his attention to his brother once more. "Why don't you get your food and eat in your room?"

Katsuya furrowed his brows. "Ya don't hafta kick the kid out, Kaiba."

"It's not a problem. He likes eating in his room," the brunet said as his brother put a few slices of pizza on his plate. "Don't you, Mokuba?"

The darker haired Kaiba nodded and grabbed a canned soda. "Yeah! That way I can watch TV while I eat," he replied with a laugh and then walked off toward the staircase. "Have _fun_, guys."

Seto narrowed his eyes at his brother's retreating back. "I don't like the way he said that," he muttered.

"Yeah, it was a little weird," Katsuya said as he walked over to the side Seto was standing on. "So let's see what ya got." His mouth watered as he looked at all the pizza. "I think I'm gonna get one of everything. What about you?"

The CEO shrugged lightly as he grabbed a plate. "I'll probably just eat the cheese."

Katsuya looked up at him in disbelief. "But you've got three other flavors! Why not live a little?"

"_Fine_. I'll get one slice of supreme. Happy?" Seto all but growled yet the blond didn't seem to mind.

Katsuya smiled at his small victory and watched the other male help himself to their lunch. "So are we eatin' in here or in yer room?"

Seto held the plate in his hands, pursing his lips in thought. "We can eat upstairs if you'd like. Just don't eat on my bed. I like my sheets crumb and stain free."

The blond nodded as he grabbed a soda. "Fine by me," he said, hurrying toward the stairs, and turned around to wave on the CEO. "C'mon! Let's get this party started!"

The other boy chuckled to himself. "I'm coming, I'm coming," he called over, smirking as Katsuya fidgeted impatiently. "You can go on ahead."

Katsuya practically ran up the stairs, almost tripping as he reached the top. The loud thumping of his feet echoed through the corridor, softened only by the carpet. "Hurry up, ya slowpoke!" he exclaimed just as Seto reached the top of the stairs. "I haven't got all day!"

Seto shook his head and laughed. "Oh? Have you got something else planned for today?"

The blond's eyebrows scrunched together and he stuck out his tongue. "Y'know what I mean," he said, eyeing the taller boy as he finally reached the door.

"Yes, unfortunately I do," Seto replied with an eye roll. He looked at Katsuya for a moment before shoving his soda into the blond's green jacket. "Here, hold this."

Katsuya narrowed his eyes at the gesture and followed the other male into the room. "Not like I got much of a choice," he said, taking a seat on the carpet, and handed the can back to Seto. "So are we gonna play and eat or do ya wanna watch somethin' on TV?"

The CEO shrugged shallowly. "It doesn't matter to me. You're the guest."

"Oh, so I can do whatever I want then?" the blond asked as he roughly removed his jacket and grinned wickedly, tugging at his steely blue t-shirt's collar.

Seto grimaced. "No," he replied simply and popped open his drink.

"Yer such a party pooper," Katsuya replied with a laugh and began eating his pizza.

The brunet rolled his eyes as he turned on the television, handing the remote to the other male. "Here, find something you wanna watch."

"I take back what I said about ya being a pooper," Katsuya said as he took the remote and started flipping through the channels. "Hmm, let's see. How about some cartoons?" The sound of a happy theme song filled the room, earning a groan from Seto.

"That's fine..." he grumbled, eating the one slice of supreme pizza.

The two of them sat in silence as they ate, Seto doing everything in his power to ignore the juvenile animation on the screen. Katsuya, however, was fully enjoying the show and his pizza, finishing much before the other. As the older Kaiba boy took the last bite of his piece, the blond switched channels and got to his feet, turning on the Xbox. "So do ya wanna do No Mercy again?" he asked as he sat back down, setting a controller in front of Seto.

"No, let's try another level. I'm feeling more like Blood Harvest," the brunet replied, turning on his controller, and looked at the other with a smirk. "Think you can keep up?"

Katsuya grinned broadly. "Hell yeah, I can. I've got this, Kaiba."

Seto skipped past the opening and set up the level, assigning them their usual characters. "Ready?" he asked, watched the blond nod confidently, and started the level.

With ease the two navigated the level but in the finale, Katsuya found himself the victim of the ever ferocious Tank. Despite his best efforts, Seto soon was the target of the Infected's rage and was pummeled into submission.

The brunet threw his controller down in anger and leaned back against his bed. "Ugh, we were so close!"

"I know!" Katsuya groaned, mimicking the CEO's stance. "Do ya wanna try again?"

Seto breathed out a sigh and nodded. "Yeah. We may as well."

The two restarted the level and failed two more times, each defeat frustrating them more than the last. Upon the fourth try at the finale, they failed once more; this time the console was turned off.

"Okay. I think we need a break from this," Seto said, getting to his feet, and stretched.

Katsuya sprawled out on the carpet and closed his eyes. "I agree," he murmured with a yawn. "It's still pretty early. Do ya wanna do somethin' else?"

"Like what?" the brunet asked plainly as he shut the doors to the entertainment center.

"Well we could go watch a movie or go to the arcade," Katsuya began, sitting up again. "We could go to the park or we could just stay here and find somethin' to do."

Seto considered the options he was listed and sat down on the edge of his bed. "I'd rather get out of here for a bit if that's okay," he said, swinging his feet out. "I could go for a movie. Just no chick flicks."

The blond got to his feet with a smile and offered him a thumbs up. "Sounds good to me!"

* * *

The two boys were able to sneak out of the mansion unnoticed by Seto's younger brother; they knew that if he were aware of their plans, he'd want to join in and that was not part of the plan. Upon reaching the theatre, they agreed upon a horror movie. Despite the blond's objections, Seto insisted upon paying for everything; 'Why have money if you can't spend it?' was his argument.

An hour and a half of slutty girls and dumb jocks being slaughtered unmercifully later, the teens walked nervously from the movies, Katsuya clinging to the bucket of popcorn in his arms. "Well that was _a lot_ scarier than I thought it was gonna be," he said finally, glancing over at his classmate.

Seto scratched his head absentmindedly and he nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a nightmare tonight."

"Seriously... I thought it was gonna be a typical slasher flick," Katsuya complained, shoveling a handful of popcorn into his mouth.

"Well it was in some ways," Seto leveled, "but then it got way too weird. I wasn't expecting there to be so much disemboweling."

The blond grimaced, swallowing the corn slowly. "No kiddin'..." he murmured and looked around, motioning across the street. "Hey, it's still pretty light out. Ya wanna go to the park?"

The CEO shrugged. "I guess. We can walk around for a while."

The two crossed the street, unaware that they were being watched, and walked along the sidewalk. "You've gotta be kidding me..." Honda and Anzu peered from behind a group of trees and then hid themselves yet again. "Since when does Jou hang out with _that_ guy?" Honda practically spat.

Anzu patted his arm in attempt to calm him. "Maybe it's not what you think."

"Not what I think? Anzu, they just came out of a movie together and now they're frolicking in the park. Maybe it's exactly what I think," he argued, his eyebrows lowered dangerously.

"So? That doesn't mean there's something going on," the brunette disagreed and crossed her arms. "Still, this isn't like them..."

"Yeah, no kidding! _This_ is what he blew us off for?" Honda snarled and punched at one of the trees.

His actions scared Anzu. She watched in horror as he struck the tree once more, his fist bright red and his knuckles torn up from the bark. "Honda, stop! Please!" she tried, grabbing a hold of his arm and held it tightly. "Violence isn't going to solve this!" Anzu felt him relax in her grip and he sighed. "Just talk to Katsuya. I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding," she said, letting go of his arm.

Honda shook his head. "I dunno, Anzu. Maybe you're right. Maybe I am just blowing this out of proportion," he gave in and shrugged.

"So you'll talk to him?" she asked, hope in her eyes.

"I will later, at least," Honda replied and turned toward the movie theatre, rubbing his sore hand. "We should probably get going. Yugi will be here any minute."

Anzu nodded and walked with him back across the street, their presence unbeknownst to the two teens halfway across the park.

* * *

Mokuba paced the floor in the front hallway. In the time that they were gone, he had gone up to Seto's room to see what they were doing, only to find that they had left. Of course he was mad and he had let his brother know that over the phone fifteen minutes ago. 'We're on the way back,' Seto had said but Mokuba didn't really want to hear it. First Seto brought some guy that he thought he didn't like into their home and then they sneak off together? Something wasn't right.

The front door swung open and the teens wandered in, catching the attention of the young raven haired Kaiba. "Where have you _been_?" he practically yelled.

"Well if you had let me explain to you over the phone, you would've known that we caught a movie and then walked around the park for an hour," Seto rationalized, his arms crossing over his chest.

"Seto, you should've told me _before_! Then I wouldn't have worried!" Mokuba complained, throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation.

The older Kaiba frowned and bent down in front of his sibling, putting his hands on the boy's shoulders. "I'm sorry that I worried you, Mokuba. That was not my intention."

Mokuba narrowed his eyes. "Then what _was_ your intention?"

Seto gave his brother an odd look. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"C'mon, Seto, it's so obvious!" the younger male whined, shaking his head.

"Maybe to you but I have no idea what you're talking about," the brunet said calmly. "Would you care to explain?"

"Okay first you bring Katsuya home with you yesterday and then you invite him over today. You won't let me be in the same room with you guys and then you go off to the movies together?" Mokuba exclaimed, earning mortified expressions from both teens. "Seto, if you want to date Katsuya, that's fine, but at least be honest with me!"

Seto and Katsuya both wore a bright shade of red on their cheeks, glancing nervously at one another. "M-Mokuba, it wasn't a date, I can assure you," Seto explained.

"Uh huh," the younger Kaiba said, uninterested. It was obvious he wasn't willing to listen to their opposition. "Do whatever you want. I'm going to my room."

The two watched him walk back upstairs. Katsuya was the first to speak. "Geez, what's with him?"

Seto straightened back up and shook his head. "I have no idea. I mean, you've been here a whole two times and he thinks something like that," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with him..."

The blond shuffled his feet, looking down at the ground. "Maybe we shouldn't hang out anymore... I don't wanna upset the kid or nothin'."

The CEO's expression turned sour and then dismayed. "If that's what you want," he murmured, turning away from the other male. He was wounded. This was the closest thing he had to friendship and it pained him to admit that he would miss being with Katsuya.

"Well it's not what _I_ want," Katsuya said, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets. "I think it's crap that we can't be around each other without gettin' flak from other people." Seto watched as the blond wound himself up more. "Who do they think they are?" Katsuya yelled, pacing the floor this time. "Y'know what? I don't give a rat's ass! Let 'em think what they wanna think! Cuz you know what? I like you, Seto Kaiba. I like hangin' out with ya and no one is gonna stop me from doin' so!" The teen's chest heaved to and fro, his fists clenched at his sides and his teeth gritted.

Seto took in the image of Katsuya, who just a moment before spoke—well, _yelled _so passionately about their newfound alliance. He let himself smile for once, which in turn made his classmate smile, too. "I'm really glad you feel that way," he said, making sure to choose his words carefully. "I enjoy your company as well."

"Really?" Katsuya said in disbelief. "I always thought ya hated me or somethin'."

The brunet looked off, his cheeks flushing lightly, and he cleared his throat. "Dislike, maybe, but I've never hated you," he replied, still averting his gaze. "I mean, I've always kinda liked you but I was under the impression that_ you_ were the one who hated me."

"Well maybe just a little," Katsuya said with a laugh and put his hand on the CEO's shoulder, "but that's water under the bridge now. You and me? We're buds."

Seto finally looked at the other male and smiled. "_Buds_? Well I suppose that term will suffice," he responded, sarcastically rolling his eyes.

The blond laughed once more. "It better! I'm not hangin' out with ya just so we can go back to bein' enemies or whatever ya wanna call it!"

"Alright, alright. Don't get your panties in a twist," Seto retorted, snickering.

"_Panties_? I ain't wearin' panties! I am wearin' some very manly boxer-briefs, thank you very much," Katsuya said, dramatically crossing his arms and huffing.

The CEO rolled his eyes again and shook his head, breathing out a light laugh. "There you go again, talking about your manhood," he said and cocked an eyebrow. "I'm starting to wonder if it's really all that you claim it to be."

Katsuya blushed and narrowed his eyes. "Oh, it's all that and more! You'll see!"

Seto's eyebrows rose. "Oh, I will, will I?" he asked, putting his hands on his hips, and smirked.

The blond's face turned redder and his mouth wobbled as if he were trying to find the words to speak. After much stammering he responded, "Y'know what I mean!" and walked off in a funk.

The other male followed behind, rather amused. "I'm not sure that I do, Jonouchi."

Katsuya looked back at him with a grimace and made a run for the stairs. "Just leave me alone," he called out just before entering the elder Kaiba's bedroom.

Seto shook his head at his classmate's antics and calmly climbed the stairs. Upon opening his door, he noticed the lights were still off, and with a flick of the switch, he saw the shape of a body huddled under his sheets. "Jonouchi, come out of there!"

"No!" the blond replied, his voice muffled by the many layers of bedding.

The CEO smirked as he quietly made his way over to the bed. "Well if you're not gonna come out, then I'm gonna come in after you," he said in a low voice just before jumping onto the spot where Katsuya lay hidden.

Katsuya in turn flailed and hollered, trying his best to get away. It didn't work, of course. He had managed to get out from under the covers but that was as far as he got. Seto had him pinned to the bed in the most awkward of ways; the blond's arms were held down against the mattress and his left leg was over Seto's shoulder. His face was beet red from their intimate position and he squirmed under the CEO's grasp.

It took a moment for the image to become clear to Seto. He was in such a daze from wrestling Katsuya into submission that he didn't realize how close the two had gotten. He quickly scrambled off of the blond and muttered his apologies under his breath.

Katsuya sighed in relief and finally relaxed. "I was really worried there for a second," he finally said, glancing over at the silent Seto. "I thought ya were gonna try to make a man outta me."

The older Kaiba blushed vividly. "In your dreams, Mutt," he managed.

The blond smirked and rolled over onto his side, poking Seto on the knee. "What kinda dreams do ya think I have?" he asked rhetorically and smiled coyly. "Not to sound like you but in _my_ dreams, _I'm_ the top dog if ya get my drift."

"That's more than I needed to know," Seto murmured, not bothering to look at the other.

Katsuya frowned and sat up, facing the young CEO. "Hey, what's the matter with you?" he asked, leaning forward to try to see the brunet's face. "Are ya alright?"

Seto glanced at him and let out a sigh. "I suppose," he replied with a shrug. "I'm just a bit frustrated. I'd really like to make this work."

The blond smiled genuinely and felt his heart thump against his ribcage. _Kaiba actually _wants_ to be friends with me?_ he thought, feeling his smile spread more. _This is too good to be true..._

"Jonouchi."

Katsuya looked up at his name, his eyebrows perked. "Huh? Oh, sorry. Were ya sayin' somethin'?"

Seto sighed out of annoyance. "Yes, but since you weren't paying any attention, maybe I should reconsider my offer," he answered, his cheeks flushing lightly and the corners of his mouth tugging downward.

"Yer offer? What was it?" the blond asked, prodding the other male's knee. "C'mon, tell me."

The CEO rolled his eyes with a smirk. "Well it seems silly in retrospect but I had asked you if you'd like to stay over."

"Stay _here_?" Katsuya asked, his mouth gaping.

Seto was taken aback by his classmate's statement, his eyebrows tensing in confusion. "Yes... Is there something wrong with that?"

"No! No, I'm just surprised you would offer that," Katsuya admitted, blushing. "I mean, I've never stayed anywhere this fancy... Are ya sure ya want a street rat like me sleepin' in yer house?"

"If I was worried about that, I wouldn't have offered it in the first place, you idiot," Seto replied with a scowl and shook his head. "You shouldn't demean yourself like that."

"But it's okay for you to call me an idiot?" the blond asked with a catlike grin.

The CEO grimaced slightly. "I'm sorry, but you _were_ being rather stupid," he answered. "I won't allow you to degrade yourself in that way. No friend of mine is going to be self-deprecating."

Katsuya smiled again. "Well I appreciate that," he said as he turned to the side and kicked off his shoes. "So Moneybags, do I get a room all to myself or are we sharin' yer bed?" He glanced back at the brunet, waggling his eyebrows in suggestion.

Seto's cheeks reddened and he looked off. "I don't care. Whatever you want."

"Hmm, both choices are quite temptin'," the blond said, flopping back down on the bed, "but seein' as I've already messed up these sheets, I think I'll just sleep here—if that's okay with you, that is."

"That's fine. As I said, I don't particularly care," the brunet replied and shrugged. "Did you want to go get some of your things? If not I have some items you can borrow for the weekend."

Katsuya pursed his lips in thought, kicking his legs against the side of the mattress. "I don't really wanna put my shoes back on so I'll go with option number two," he answered with a grin and held up two fingers in the form of a peace sign.

Seto breathed out a laugh and rolled his eyes. "That's rather lazy of you."

"I know but ya still love me, doncha?" The blond smiled coyly before breaking out into raucous laughter after seeing the CEO blush.

"I'm going to have someone bring up the guest supplies," Seto said as he got off the bed in a hurry, keeping his back to his classmate in attempt to hide his face. "Please make yourself comfortable. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Katsuya waved his fingers at the elder Kaiba's retreating back, grinning at his accomplishment. "That was too easy," he said to himself, staring up the canopy. "Maybe a little _too_ easy..."

* * *

The rest of the evening was filled with more food and more video games, much to the delight of Katsuya and his grumbling belly. Seto even allowed Mokuba to come in and watch their game play. The dimmed lights, however, got the best of the younger Kaiba; he soon slipped off to sleep. "He's kinda cute just layin' there like that," Katsuya said just before Seto picked up his little brother.

"Yes but that's what he has his own bed for," the brunet replied, readjusting the boy in his arms. "I'm gonna take him to his room. You can get changed for bed if you'd like."

The blond nodded and waited for the door to close to start removing his clothes. "Man, this is _definitely_ not how I expected to spend _my_ weekend," he said aloud as he pulled his shirt over his head. He fiddled with his jeans and soon had them off as well, leaving him only in his black boxer-briefs. Katsuya stretched his arms into the air, groaning lightly as his muscles slowly relaxed.

"Alright, I'm ba—" Seto stood in the doorway and stared at the blond's muscular frame, blushing at how little he was wearing. He quickly averted his gaze when Katsuya looked over at him. "I-I'm sorry. I thought you'd be dressed by now."

"It's okay. We're both guys," Katsuya said with a laugh and waved the embarrassed Kaiba in. "So is the little scamp all cozy in his bed?"

Seto nodded as he closed the door gently behind him. "Yeah. He didn't wake up at all," he replied and made his way over to his dresser. With his back turned to the blond, he asked, "Aren't you going to put on the pajamas I brought you or are you going to sleep in your underwear?"

The other male grinned cheekily as he snuck over to the young CEO. "What would you prefer?" he breathed into Seto's ear, pressing his body against his back.

A shiver raked its way through the brunet's body and a moment later Seto let out a yelp as he nearly jumped out of his own skin. "C-cut it out, Jonouchi! You're not funny!" he exclaimed, his face beet red and his heart pounding.

"Lighten up, Kaiba. I'm only jokin'!" Katsuya said with a laugh. "I'll be a good boy and put on my jammies, okay?"

"Good," Seto said simply before disappearing into the master bathroom, his own pajamas in hand. A few minutes later he reappeared, visibly relieved that the blond did what he said he would do.

"Man, I gotta hand it to ya, Kaiba. Ya really treat yer guests good!" he said, already settled under the covers.

The CEO ignored his classmate's bad use of grammar and walked over to the bed, pulling the covers down. Despite the fact that he had given Katsuya a t-shirt and some sleep pants to wear, one of those two things were missing. "Jonouchi, I distinctly heard you say you'd be a good boy and put on your pajamas."

"I did!" the blond exclaimed, sitting up on his elbows. "But ya gotta understand, Kaiba. I've never slept on satin sheets before! It feels _so good_ on my skin!"

Seto pinched the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed. "Then I'm really surprised you kept the shirt on," he said, finally deciding to climb into bed.

"I tried it without but I got kinda cold," Katsuya said with a yawn, turning onto his left side. "Doncha ever go commando?"

The young CEO shrugged, a light blush playing on his cheeks. "I hardly think that's any of _your_ business," he replied, "but no, not recently."

Katsuya nodded. "Yeah, it's a little too cold to be in less than yer skivvies," he said, snickering, and yawned once more. "Y'know, this has been a pretty fun day."

Seto glanced over at the blond, his face etched with surprise. "Really? You weren't bored?"

His classmate laughed. "Hardly! Ya showed me a real good time today," he replied and rolled onto his back, stretching his arms above his head. Katsuya folded them back under his head and looked over at Seto with a smile. "Thanks for havin' me over. We should do this more often."

"Perhaps we should," Seto said contemplatively, looking up at the canopy. He turned his head back over to speak with Katsuya once more but the blond had already fallen fast asleep. The brunet smiled as he pulled the covers up more and closed his eyes. "Maybe this is the way it's supposed to be," he whispered, his voice barely audible, and before long joined Katsuya in slumber.

* * *

_Katsuya? _

_Katsuya, where are you?_

_I can't see where I'm going! It's so dark... Please, this isn't funny! _

_Where are all the lights? A-and the signs? Where am I? Where's Katsuya?_

_Katsuya!_

Seto awoke with a jump, his shoulders being shaken by someone he couldn't quite see.

"Hey, are ya alright? Were ya havin' a nightmare?" Katsuya said, his voice drenched in worry, as he brushed the hair out of the brunet's eyes.

The young CEO smiled, still only half awake, and wrapped his arms around his classmate's neck, pulling him down in a hug. "Katsuya! There you are. I couldn't find you..."

The blond blushed brilliantly as he allowed Seto to do this, swallowing dryly. _Did he just call me—?_ He pulled away from their embrace much to the disappointment of his heavy-eyed companion and leaned on his elbow. His heart was throbbing in his ears as Seto's hand came to rest upon his cheek; their eyes never once parted. "K-Kaiba, what're ya talkin' about? Did ya have a bad dream?" he tried, his voice feeling hoarse and uneven from the dryness in his throat.

Seto nodded. "Yeah. I was in a car and I was driving around, trying to find you," he replied, moving his hand back down to rest on his stomach. "There weren't any streetlights or signs and the road... It curved a lot and I thought I would lose control. The whole time I was just calling out your name but I couldn't find you... I felt so lost..."

Katsuya gulped hard as his face began to burn. "Well I'm here now," he said gently, earning a smile from the CEO.

"Yeah, I'm glad," he replied as he turned onto his side. Seto curled into the blond, burying his face in the white t-shirt, and nuzzled against him until Katsuya was on his back again.

Katsuya sighed as his classmate fell asleep next to him, the brunet's breath warm against his neck. His heart was still beating vigorously against his ribcage; Katsuya wondered how it wasn't waking the sleeping CEO. He pulled the blankets up over them and gingerly stroked Seto's back. _Maybe this is how it's supposed to be_, he thought, considering the dream described to him and the teen nestled against his body. _Maybe this is my fate..._

* * *

Honda leaned up against the lockers, glancing at his watch every so often. Finally his best friend walked around the corner, wearing a look of surprise. "Hey, Honda. What's up?" Katsuya asked as the darker haired boy moved away from his locker.

"Not much. Didn't hear from you this weekend," he replied, watching casually as the blond pulled out two books and a binder.

"Yeah, sorry. I had some other plans come up," Katsuya said with a shrug and closed the metal door. "Did you guys have fun without me?"

Honda smirked. "I guess, but you know something? I saw the weirdest thing while we were waiting for Yugi," he said with a tilted brow.

"Oh yeah?" The blond grinned wickedly, imagining what sordid thing his friend was about to tell him. His tongue flicked out to moisten his lips; he loved hearing a little idle gossip every once in a while.

"Yeah," Honda replied, leaning back against the lockers with his arms crossed. "So uh, what were you doin' with Seto Kaiba this weekend?"

Katsuya's heart sank, his face losing color quickly. "W-what do ya mean?"

The brunet shook his head with a laugh. "Anzu and I saw you guys leave the theatre," he replied as he glared dangerously at his friend. "You blew us off to hang out with _him_?"

"I-I uh... I—" Katsuya's lips bobbed as he tried to find the words, a cool sweat forming along his brow.

"Is there a problem, Jonouchi?"

The blond snapped out of his daze to see Seto Kaiba standing next to them, looking stern as ever.

"Yeah, actually there is," Honda answered instead. He approached the taller brunet and shoved him against the lockers. "What the hell do you think you're doin'? What do you want with Jonouchi?"

"Honda, what're ya doin'?!" the blond yelled, prying the pointy haired boy off the other.

Honda didn't bother to look at Katsuya; his eyes were glued on Seto. "Gonna have him fight your battle for you, Richie?" he asked, pointing his thumb at his best friend. "Or are we gonna settle this like men?"

Seto's face tensed more, his eyes staring icily into his opponent's. "I'm not gonna fight you," he practically growled.

The other brunet grinned wildly. "Well then it'll make winning that much easier for me," he said before shoving him once more. "So what's your plan, Kaiba? Gonna get close to Jou as some sick way to humiliate him? Is this how you get your kicks nowadays?"

Seto shoved him back. "There is no _plan_," he snarled, grabbing Honda by his collar.

"So you're playin' it by ear? Clever," Honda replied coolly before grabbing the CEO's collar and head-butting him hard.

Seto stumbled back as his hand shot up to grasp his pounding forehead, hissing at the pain. Katsuya ran between the two, holding his arms out as a way to keep them apart. "Honda, leave him outta this!" he shouted angrily. "It was _my_ idea! _I_ did this—not him. So if you've got a fight, pick it with me."

Honda tensed his brows in confusion. "So that's what it's come to, Jou? You're choosin' him over _me_?"

"I'm not choosin' anybody!" the blond exclaimed. "So what if I hang out with him? What's it gonna hurt?"

"Jonouchi, how can you be so stupid?" The pointy haired boy approached his friend, keeping an eye on the CEO just behind them. "Have you forgotten how he's treated you? All the names he's called you?"

"No, but it's not like I was any better," Katsuya replied evenly. "I just wanna start over again."

"It doesn't work that way," Honda said, his expression growing more on edge. "_I_ can't forget it and as your friend, I can't let you be treated that way."

The blond attempted to smile to calm his friend down. "I appreciate that yer worried about me but ya don't gotta be. I know what I'm doin'."

Honda shook his head once more. "I'm not gonna stand by and let you make another mistake," he replied.

"How do ya know it's gonna be a mistake? Ju—"

"Jonouchi, stop." Seto's voice rang clear in the empty hallway as he stepped forward, placing a hand on the blond's shoulder. "I don't want to come between you two so I'm just gonna step down. I don't want you fighting my fight anymore."

"But..." Katsuya looked into the CEO's crisp blue eyes and could see the hurt within them as plain as day; his throat tightened as he saw a glimpse of Seto's lips trembling.

"It's for the best," Seto said firmly. "Your friendship with him is more important. He's stood by you through everything I've already put you through and... And I'm sure he'll do the same now." He breathed out a sigh and turned on his heels. "Thank you for trying, Katsuya Jonouchi."

The blond watched the CEO's retreating back, waiting for him to come back and say it was a joke and that he was kidding, but he didn't. Seto kept walking down the hallway and eventually disappeared into the throng of students bustling in through the school doors. His throat tightened up as he tried to will away the tears that threatened to form. He wouldn't dare cry. He couldn't.

"Jou, are you okay?"

Katsuya looked up at his name being called. "No, I'm not okay," he replied, eyeing his so-called friend. "Why did ya hafta go and do that?"

Honda's brows tensed at his question. "I'm just tryin' to look after you."

"Lookin' after me? How is tellin' me who I can and can't be friends with lookin' after me?" the blond all but yelled.

"Dude, you have to understand where I'm comin' from," the brunet tried but he could tell his friend wasn't willing to listen.

"I understand just fine. Yer the one that needs some understandin'," Katsuya replied lowly and stomped off toward his homeroom. _This day can't possibly get any worse..._

* * *

English class rolled around once more; normally it was the class Katsuya looked forward to most. Not only was it the last class of the day but it was also his only class with Seto Kaiba. The blond ambled into the classroom, his heart pounding in his ears. He hadn't seen any sign of the CEO since that morning and he hoped to sort out this situation. Much to his chagrin, the brunet was nowhere in sight.

_Where the hell is he?_ Katsuya wondered as he drummed his fingers on his desk. _He's always here before me..._

The tardy bell rang and still no sign of the elder Kaiba. The teacher began her lesson as she always did and even asked a student to take over reading the parts assigned to Seto.

_He's not comin'..._

Katsuya sat in a daze, barely listening to his classmates reading through _King Lear_, and doodled in his notebook. The last bell rang at long last and the students filed out the door, Honda and Yugi staying back to wait for their friend.

"Hey, Katsuya! Are you coming over to the game shop with us?" Yugi asked with a smile, watching as the blond lazily piled his books atop one another.

"Nah, I think I'll pass," he replied, his voice oddly quiet.

The shorter male furrowed his brows. "Are you okay? You seem kinda...off."

Katsuya glanced at Honda for a moment before looking back at Yugi. "I'm fine. I just wanna go home is all."

"Oh, okay," Yugi said almost disappointedly and looked up at the brunet. "Well Honda, I guess we better find Anzu..." He grabbed a hold of Katsuya's sleeve as he moved to leave, earning a glance from his friend. "Are you sure you're okay?"

The blond smiled lightly. "Yeah, I'm sure," he replied, looking from Yugi to Honda. "I'll see ya guys tomorrow."

Katsuya's feet shuffled down the empty hallway toward the front doors, ignoring the students loitering outside, and began his walk home. He glanced up at the sky, noting its gray color. _It better not start rainin' till after I'm inside_, he thought, grimacing at the thought of walking in the chilly air coupled with a downpour.

Thunder rumbled in the distance, causing the blond to quicken his pace, but it was to no avail. A smattering of rain fell down from the clouds—a little at first; Katsuya knew that before long he'd be soaked to the bone. He started to run down the sidewalk, clutching his books to his chest. _Just a little bit further! I'm almost home!_ He rounded the corner just as the clouds seemed to open up, releasing a heavy rain onto the unsuspecting earth below. The blond took off in a sprint toward his apartment complex, nearly tripping on his own feet, but safely made it up the stairs.

His chest heaved as he slid down the wall just outside his door. Katsuya placed his books down next to him and ran his fingers through his wet locks. "This is just great," he said to himself, holding his head in his hands. Moisture dripped down his cheeks, streams of cool and then warm mixing upon his skin. He pulled his knees up and clutched them desperately as a sob tore through his body. For the first time in a long time, he felt lost—utterly lost.

* * *

Another day at school came and went and Katsuya didn't feel any better. Luckily he had not caught a cold from being out in the bitter cloudburst but his heart felt heavier than ever. It ached with each passing second and without even realizing it, he found himself standing in front of Seto's locker. He looked at it sadly, clenching and unclenching his fists. He wanted to punch it but he knew it wouldn't do him any good. It would only leave him with bruised knuckles and a different kind of pain to deal with.

"Katsuya? What're you still doing here?"

The blond glanced over at Yugi, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I dunno," he replied with a shrug. "Where're Honda and Anzu?"

"Honda went home and Anzu's got a study group at the library," Yugi reported and walked with him toward the front doors. "How are you feeling today?"

Katsuya shrugged again. "Worse, I guess."

Yugi grabbed his friend's arm, stopping him in his tracks; his eyes were wrought with worry. "Katsuya, what's going on? Please, tell me."

The blond looked off, not bothering to reply.

"...Honda told me what happened yesterday," Yugi said tentatively, noticing how his friend noticeably stiffened. "Is it because of that?"

Katsuya nodded shallowly, feeling his face flush a deep pink and his eyes sting.

The spiky haired boy frowned. "Katsuya, I can't tell you what to do and neither can Honda or Seto," he began, "but what I can tell you is that you need to follow your heart. What is your heart telling you?"

The blond swallowed dryly, finally turning his eyes toward his friend. "I-I... I wanna be with Seto," he said softly, feeling embarrassed for having said those words.

Yugi smiled warmly. "Then go. What's stopping you?"

"Y'know somethin'? Yer absolutely right," Katsuya said, sounding more like himself again. "What am I doin' here? I'm feelin' sorry for myself when I shouldn't be. Y'know where I _need _to be? I need to be with that Kaiba kid! I bet he's in worse shape than me!"

"I'm sure he is," Yugi said with a laugh, amazed at how one little pep talk could totally turn someone around. "Now go! Get outta here, Katsuya!"

The blond chuckled as he ran out the door in the direction of Seto Kaiba's mansion, his heart feeling lighter as he envisioned the brunet in front of him. _This is what I've been needin'_, he reflected, his smile stretching across his face. _This is what's been missin'._

Before long Katsuya was standing at the front door, panting; he had run the whole way there. "I hope he's home," he said aloud as he rang the doorbell and waited anxiously.

A few minutes later, Mokuba opened the door, his eyebrows shooting up upon seeing the blond. "Katsuya! You're here," he said in surprise. "A-are you here to see Seto?"

He nodded in reply. "Yeah, is he home?" he asked after being ushered into the foyer.

"He's up in his room," Mokuba said, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him toward the stairs. "He's been holed up there all day! I don't think he even left his bed..."

Katsuya frowned as he was tugged along. "Really?"

"That's what one of the maids told me," the darker haired Kaiba replied. "When I talked to him, he seemed really depressed. Did something happen at school?"

The taller boy nodded once more. "Yeah, you could say that," he said as they reached Seto's bedroom door.

Mokuba frowned deeply and said, "Then I need you to make him happy again. Can you do that for me?"

Katsuya smiled and patted the child on the back. "Can do, kiddo! Just leave it to me," he replied with a wink.

"Good luck!" the raven haired boy said just before hugging Katsuya's waist and running back downstairs.

The blond stared at the wooden door, feeling his heart in his throat. _It's now or never_, he thought as he turned the doorknob, taking a peek into the room. Seto was lying on the bed, facing away from him and the only light in the room came from a lamp on the nightstand.

Katsuya quietly entered the room, slipping off his sneakers and setting them near the door, and snuck over to the bed. He took a moment to breathe out his trepidations and climbed in behind Seto, snaking an arm around his waist. He felt the brunet stiffen at his touch and heard his breath hitch in his throat. In return Katsuya held him closer and nuzzled his shoulder with his nose. "Hey."

"H-hey," Seto shakily replied and turned over onto his back, his eyes weary as they gazed up at Katsuya.

The blond swallowed dryly and knitted his brows as he looked upon the CEO's face. "How's it goin'?" he asked, brushing a few strands of hair from his blue eyes.

"Not so good," Seto replied, breathing out a short laugh. "What're you doing here?"

"I'm glad ya asked," Katsuya said as a grin spread across his face. "I realized today, thanks to Yugi, that _you_ ain't the boss of me."

The CEO's brows tensed in bewilderment. "What are you talking about?"

"See, on Monday you decided _for me_ that we weren't gonna be friends no more," he replied boldly. "That's not gonna fly with me, Kaiba-baby."

Seto smirked. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, it _is_ so. But y'know, I got to thinkin'," Katsuya continued, prodding his lips in thought. "I don't really wanna be yer friend anymore."

The brunet's face went pale from shock and then reddened with anger as he tried to crawl out of bed.

"Oh, no you don't!" Katsuya caught the squirmy CEO in a tight embrace and held him from behind as he struggled to get away.

"Unhand me!" Seto barked as he pushed against his classmate with all his might.

Katsuya pushed the brunet onto his back and straddled him, pinning his arms against the mattress. "Will ya let me finish? Geez," he said with a laugh as Seto's face turned redder and redder from rage and embarrassment. "Now as I was sayin', I don't really wanna be friends with ya." The brunet's face twisted up more in response and this made Katsuya smile. "If I'm gonna try again, I'm gonna need more from ya."

"So this _is_ about money, isn't it?" the CEO seethed as he struggled under the blond's grip.

"What? No!" Katsuya exclaimed with a laugh and shook his head. "Man and I thought _I_ was dense!"

Seto glared at the other male and with all of the strength he could muster, he threw Katsuya off of him and pinned him roughly to the bed. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't lay you out right now," he demanded through gritted teeth.

Katsuya's hands flew up defensively as a goofy grin found its way onto his face. "C'mon, ya wouldn't hit the guy that's in love with ya, would ya?"

The CEO's mouth gaped and his skin paled as he stared down at Katsuya. A moment later his hand crashed against the blond's cheek, leaving a crimson welt on his skin. "Don't toy with me, Jonouchi!"

"I'm not!" he exclaimed, clutching his hurt cheek. "Why would I joke about somethin' like that?"

Seto stared into the Katsuya's warm honey-brown eyes and he flushed. "Y-you're being serious." He scrambled off of his classmate and continued to stare at him with wide eyes.

Katsuya sat up and rubbed at his face. "Yeah, I am. I'm not gonna lie about how I feel."

The brunet swallowed the lump in his throat, his mouth growing dry. "...when?"

Katsuya raised his eyebrows in surprise. "When what?"

"When did you realize this?" Seto asked as he stared off at his disheveled blankets.

"Yesterday, I guess. I felt so mixed-up and confused after everythin' happened," he admitted, averting his own gaze. "Like I've always felt like there was somethin' missin' from my life and I couldn't put my finger on it. Then after I lost you, I realized what it was."

"What was it?" the CEO questioned hollowly.

Katsuya smiled to himself and then looked up at the brunet. "It was love." He moved over next to the other male and grabbed hold of his left hand. "Seto, yer the only one that's ever made me feel this way. I wanna try again but not as friends. Can we try?"

Seto fidgeted, his cheeks burning bright at the sound of his first name. "I don't know. I've never done anything like this before..."

"Hey, neither have I. Go figure," the blond said with a wide smile and reached out to touch Seto's cheek. "Maybe I can persuade ya. How about it?" Katsuya watched the other male nod gently and as he closed the gap between them, he saw Seto smile.

The kiss lasted for only a few seconds but it was enough for Katsuya. He had tasted his once-enemy's lips and now those lips were poised in a smile—a smile that he knew was meant only for him. He sank back down on the bed, let out a sigh, and pulled the CEO down on top of him.

Seto blushed vividly from their contact but settled comfortably against the blond's muscular chest. His long fingers reached out to brush the hair out of Katsuya's face, lingering upon his cheek. "Are you sure this is what you want?" he asked after a moment.

Katsuya grabbed a hold of his dearest's hand and placed a kiss upon his knuckles. With a tender smile, he replied, "I've never been surer of anythin' in my life." He pulled the brunet in for another impassioned kiss as he laced their fingers together. He smiled into the kiss and as their lips parted, Katsuya murmured, "Yer the only road I know and I wanna keep it that way."

* * *

I hope that _Drive My Soul_ was up to snuff for you guys! Any _positive_ reviews, faves, and follows are appreciated!

Stay tuned for the next story, _River_!

Thank you for your patience and for reading!


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